Climate Change

Track Advisor: John Abatzoglou, Geography

This track builds on a new graduate climate curriculum in CNR and Geography, and is intended to address the need for professionals who understand not only climate science, but also specific issues related to impacts, mitigation, and adaptation. For example, several enterprises in the Intermountain West are concerned with biological carbon storage, while others are concerned with energy efficiencies and related carbon footprint issues.

This PSM includes graduate courses in biogeography, bioregional planning, watershed science, climatology, land use, climate and water resources, spatial analysis and modeling, carbon cycle, energy systems, and global environmental change. Select graduate courses germane to mitigation and adaptation are taken from curricula in geography, forestry, plant science, soil science, business, and agricultural economics. Courses related to greenhouse gas reduction are taken from programs in bioenergy and bioproducts and the joint program in energy offered at the UI Idaho Falls Center in conjunction with the Department of Energy Idaho National Laboratory and the Center for Advanced Energy Studies.

Using these facilities and faculty, the Environmental Science program is developing a graduate emphasis area in sustainable energy systems, and courses in this program will be available to PSM students in the climate change track.

Track prerequisites: At a minimum, students entering the program in this track are expected to have successfully completed college level introductory courses in biology, chemistry, physics and algebra.